One Wrong Turn: A Novel

by Deanna Lynn Sletten

When they returned home that night, Clay was both physically and emotionally spent. He gave Jilly extra attention when he tucked her into bed to make sure she was okay. After he checked that the house was locked up and all the lights were off, he walked heavily up the stairs to Jess’s bedroom and dropped on the bed. He was too tired to take off his clothes, too stressed to do anything more than stare at the ceiling and think about Jess.

  The doctor was wrong. It hadn’t been just a spasm. If that were the truth, then why didn’t Jess have them regularly? Why did she have one at the exact moment her daughter was crying? To Clay, there was only one answer—Jess had heard Jilly crying, and she was trying to find her way back to comfort her. A child in distress is the worst sound any mother could hear, and Jess was no different. Jilly’s tears had caused her to react. Clay knew in his heart this was true.

  So, how could he get Jess to respond enough to wake up?

  Jilly’s distress hadn’t brought Jess out of her coma because she’d stopped crying, and Clay had spoke soothingly to Jess until she calmed down. If the crying had continued, would Jess have woken up? He hated the thought of using stress to bring Jess back. It had to be something else. Something that would tear at her heartstrings and make her want to push herself to wake up.

  Then Clay remembered the song.

  They had tried playing the CD they’d made of “Colour My World” before, and it hadn’t caused a reaction. But what about live music? What if he, Maddie, and Emma played live for Jess? Clay knew that song was special to Jess. Would it be enough to get her to react?

  He had to try. He finally fell asleep, feeling hopeful.

  Clay spent Friday morning on the phone talking to his medical insurance and to the managers of two of the facilities the doctor had recommended. He made appointments to visit both facilities on Monday, because he had to see them before making the decision—one of the hardest decisions of his life.

  One facility that he was leaning toward was an hour and a half away, while the other one was closer. But he had to place Jess’s care first over the distance, though he knew it would be hard for the girls to visit often if she were in the farther one. They’d be relegated to seeing their mother on weekends, maybe even only once a week. He hated that. But he had to do what was best for Jess.

  Clay called Eileen and asked her if she thought the high school would lend them a small electric piano over the weekend.

  She knew the music teacher well, so she didn’t think it would be a problem. “I’ll pick it up when I get the kids. Are you planning a recital?”

  Clay chuckled. “Kind of. Would you be willing to bring Emma and her violin to the hospital tonight after dinner? Bring Jerrod and Alex too, if they’d like to come. There’s something I want to do for Jess.”

  “Well, now I’m intrigued,” Eileen said.

  Clay told her his plan, and she agreed it was worth trying. “We’ll be there.”

  Instead of going to the hospital that afternoon, he opted to do some work around the house. He changed the beds, did some laundry, then made a grocery run. These simple tasks kept his mind focused so he wouldn’t stress about tonight. One day at a time, he kept telling himself. When the girls came home, he had everything in order and was ready to face the evening.

  Clay told the girls his plan while they were out to dinner. “Let’s play Mom’s favorite song live for her and see if we can get through to her. I’m not guaranteeing she’ll wake up, but we can at least try.”

  Maddie agreed it was a good idea, but Jilly looked skeptical.

  “We played the CD for Mom, and nothing happened. Why would this do it?”

  “I’m not saying it will do the trick, sweetie, but it’s the one thing we haven’t tried. I believe that your mom reacted to your crying last night, and that’s why she moved. This time, I’m hoping she’ll react to hearing her favorite song played by those she loves most. We just have to try.”

  “Okay,” Jilly said, brightening. “Let’s try.”

  Maddie carried the electric piano and Clay carried his guitar into the hospital. Jilly followed, her eyes alight with excitement. The Neilsons were all waiting for them in the reception area, and Emma had her violin case.

  “Thanks for coming,” Clay said to all of them.

  “We wouldn’t have missed it,” Alex said.

  “Let’s go to Jess’s room.” Clay led the procession down the hall.

  When they entered Jess’s room, a nurse was checking her vitals.

  “What do we have here?” the young nurse asked. “Looks like a concert.”

  Jilly piped up. “We’re going to play music for my mom.”

  The nurse smiled at her.

  “That sounds nice. I’m sure she’ll enjoy it,” she said as she left the room.

  Maddie set the piano on the rolling bed tray and plugged it in. She had written the music on song sheets for Emma, and she placed them on the piano’s music tray. Clay pulled out his guitar and slipped the strap over his shoulder, while Emma took her violin out and went to stand next to Maddie. Everyone positioned themselves around the room. Alex and Eileen stood together at the foot of the bed, while Jilly stood beside her mother, and Jerrod sat on the window ledge. Tonight, the musicians weren’t the main attraction; Jess was. All eyes were on her, waiting to see a twitch or a blink, any indication that she could hear the music.

  Clay walked closer to the bed, bent down, and placed a light kiss on Jess’s forehead.

  “Everyone you love is here, sweetie,” he said softly. “We all want more than anything for you to come back to us. Please try. Here’s your favorite song, our wedding song, to pull you to us.”

  Straightening up, he nodded at Maddie to begin. Jilly glanced up at him, and he gave her an encouraging smile. Maddie began, playing each note beautifully. Soon, Emma joined in, the strings of her violin adding sweetness to the song. Then Clay started to play, strumming softly. The music was rich and full. It drifted and floated through the air, magical and enchanting, sweet and heartwarming. And then it flourished as Clay began to sing.

  “As time goes on, I realize, how much you mean, to me.”

  The door opened softly, and nurses tiptoed in. A doctor joined them. Everyone stood, transfixed, as the music flowed and Clay sang. Tears filled his eyes as the words touched his heart. How perfectly the words described this moment in time.

  Memories enveloped him. The first time he and Jess met. Their first date. When he first touched his lips to hers. He loved her dearly then, and so very much now. As he stared down at Jess, he mentally urged her to wake up. To come back to him and the girls and fill their life with joy again.

  The words ended, but the song played on. Clay glanced at Maddie and saw that she too had tears rolling down her cheeks as she concentrated on playing. Emma played on too, every note perfect. How proud her parents must be of her right now, Clay thought. And Jilly, his sweet little Jilly-bear. Her eyes were focused only on Jess, waiting, hoping, for her mother to wake up.

  Maddie and Emma played the final notes, and all went silent. No one moved. Everyone stared at Jess. But she just lay there, silent, unmoving.

  A collective sigh filled the room as if everyone had been holding their breath. Clay looked up and saw Eileen wiping away tears. The nurses and doctor all looked as disappointed as Clay felt. They had hoped for magic to happen too. They had hoped for a miracle. The doctor and nurses quietly left the room.

  Jilly looked up at her dad. “Mommy didn’t wake up.”

  “I know, sweetie. I’m sorry. But we tried.”

  Eileen walked over to Maddie and Emma and wrapped her arms around their shoulders. “You both played beautifully. Every note was perfect. I’m sure Jess heard it and loved every moment of it.”

  “We can hope for that,” Clay said, sitting down in the chair and placing his guitar in its case.

  “Maybe you could try again,” Jilly said hopefully.

  He reached out and pulled his younger daughter to him, kissing the top of her head. “W
e will, Jilly-bear. Another time. We won’t stop trying. But I think we should pack up and go home now. We’ll come back and see your mom tomorrow.”

  All the hope and expectation everyone had felt now fell to the floor, waiting to be swept away. Maddie boxed up the piano, and Emma placed her violin in its case. No one spoke. There was nothing left to say.

  Eileen led the procession out of the room with Maddie, Emma, Jilly, and Jerrod following close behind. Their heads were bent, and their shoulders drooped with disappointment.

  Alex placed his hand on Clay’s shoulder. “Don’t lose hope.”

  Clay nodded. He wasn’t sure how much hope he had left.

  After Alex left, Clay gazed down at Jess one last time. Next week, after he’d chosen a care facility, she’d spend her days there. It seemed so final. Like he’d already lost her.

  He bent down and kissed her lightly on the lips. “I love you more than anything in this world, sweetie.” Picking up his guitar case, he walked to the door.

  “Clay?”

  He stopped when he heard the soft noise. He shook his head. No, I must be hearing things.

  “Clay?”

  This time he’d heard it clearly. Someone was saying his name.

  Turning, he gazed at Jess. Her eyes were open, and her head was turned in his direction.

  “Jess?” He hurried closer to the bed. Jess’s head moved as he drew nearer. “Jess!” He put his guitar down and ran to her side.

  Her lips turned up in the slightest smile.

  “I knew you’d come back to me,” she whispered.

  Tears sprang to his eyes. “Yes, my love. I came back. And so did you. And I promise I’ll never leave you again.” He reached down and cupped her face before placing a gentle kiss on her lips. “I love you, Jess. You’re everything to me.” She gazed up at him and smiled.

  Excitement coursed through him.

  “I have to tell everyone!” he said, running to the door and pulling it open. “Maddie! Jilly! Everyone! Hurry! She’s awake! She’s awake!”

  The group had been standing glumly in the hallway waiting for him, but as soon as they heard the news, they came running in. Maddie and Jilly led the way. The girls went to their mother’s bedside and stopped. Jess’s eyes were closed.

  “Mommy?” Jilly said hesitantly.

  Jess’s eyelids fluttered; then she opened them and gazed at her youngest daughter.

  “Jilly-bear,” she whispered. “Maddie. Oh, my sweethearts.”

  The girls began to cry as they crawled up into the bed and hugged their mother. Jess wrapped her arms around them as tears fell down her cheeks too.

  Eileen and Alex stood, teary-eyed, their arms around each other. Emma and Jerrod stared in amazement, happiness marked clearly on their faces.

  Soon the room was filled with nurses and the on-call doctor. They all stared at Jess in wonder. A miracle had indeed happened.

  EPILOGUE

  “Tell me again how it happened,” Jilly said, cuddled in bed beside her mother at home two weeks later. “Tell me how Daddy woke you up.”

  Jess laughed softly as she pulled her daughter to her. “You’ve heard it so many times, you can tell it yourself.”

  “But I want you to tell it,” Jilly said.

  “Okay,” Jess relented.

  Maddie walked into the room with her mother’s lunch on a tray. “Jilly, are you pestering Mom again? You know she needs her rest.”

  “I just want to hear the story again,” her sister insisted.

  Maddie rolled her eyes, but she sat on the end of their mother’s bed to listen too.

  Jess began to speak. “As I lay there in bed, I could hear music playing, but it sounded far, far away. I recognized my favorite song, our wedding song. I felt like I was lost in a thick, dense fog. I tried pushing through it to get to the music, but it was so hard. My body wanted to sleep, but my mind wanted to find the music. Then, the song stopped, and I lost all hope of ever finding it.”

  “And then Daddy kissed you?” Jilly piped up.

  “Let Mom tell it,” Maddie said.

  Jess laughed softly and continued. “I started to fall back down through the fog, back toward the darkness. I thought maybe I had been dreaming the music, like I’d dreamt so many other things. Just as the darkness had almost enveloped me, I felt someone brush my lips in a soft kiss. I heard your father say, ‘I love you more than anything in this world.’ That’s when I knew the music had been real. I had to return. I had to see for myself that your dad had come back.”

  “And you woke up! Just like Snow White!” Jilly exclaimed.

  “Or Sleeping Beauty,” Maddie added.

  “Or Rip Van Winkle,” Clay said, chuckling, as he entered the room.

  “Yuck! No one kissed Rip Van Winkle,” Maddie said.

  He shrugged. “I couldn’t think of any other fairy-tale princesses.”

  “And now we all live happily ever after,” Jilly said. “Dad is home, Mom is awake, and we’re a family again.”

  Clay sat on the bed beside Jilly. “Yes. Now we live happily ever after.”

  Jilly beamed at him.

  “But first, you have to let your mom rest and get better,” Clay said, lifting Jilly from the bed and setting her on the floor.

  It was Jess’s turn to roll her eyes. “Rest? I slept for six weeks. Wasn’t that enough?”

  “You heard the doctor. He said you have to take it easy and work your way back to normal. Otherwise, I’m sending you back to the hospital so they can tell you what to do.”

  “No hospital. Staying there for a week after I woke up was enough for me,” Jess said. “I want to be home with my family.”

  Her eyes shone when she said that, and Clay’s heart melted at the sight. He was so thankful to have her back, and to have his family back. He was taking the summer off to be with them and try to make up for lost time. Eventually, he’d return to playing, but he only wanted to do studio work from now on. No more road tours. No more being tempted to return to drinking. He had his family and his support group here, as well as their amazing neighbors, Eileen and Alex, to keep him on the straight and narrow. And he didn’t want to veer from that path ever again.

  Clay turned to the girls. “One more week, and the first guests arrive. Are we ready?”

  “As ready as we’ll ever be,” Maddie said.

  “I’m ready,” Jilly said.

  Clay grinned. Maddie had done a wonderful job of filling in for Jess and getting the house ready. And she was still giving orders. Maddie was going to be a great help to her mother, now that she felt a part of the business.

  “I wish I could make breakfast for our very first guests,” Jess said, looking disappointed.

  Clay caressed her cheek. “Let’s see how you feel next week. I don’t want you to overdo it.”

  She gazed up into her husband’s eyes. “You’re babying me, you know. I’ll be fine. In fact, I plan on feeling well enough by Monday night to go to the middle school concert. No one is stopping me from hearing Maddie and Emma play my favorite song.”

  “You were lucky. You had a private concert,” he said as he kissed the top of her head.

  “Yuck. Come on, Jilly. Our lunch is ready downstairs. Let’s leave them alone.” Maddie turned and headed out the door with Jilly at her heels.

  Clay grinned at his girls as they left. “It’s nice to be home,” he said, returning his gaze to Jess. He sat down next to Jess, pulling her into his arms.

  “Yes,” she said softly. “It’s nice to be home.”

  ABOUT THE AUTHOR

  Author Deanna Lynn Sletten believes in fate, love at first sight, soul mates, second chances, and happily ever after. When she initially started writing women’s fiction and romance, she decided to self-publish her first three novels. Since then, she has published twelve books—including Finding Libbie, her second book with Lake Union Publishing.

  She lives in northern Minnesota and is married with two grown children. When she’s not writing, she
enjoys relaxing in a boat on the lake and walking the wooded trails around her home with her beautiful Australian Shepherd.